Printing press compensator



Nov. 16, 1948. w. F. HUCK PRINTING PRESS COMPENSATOR Filed Jan. 28, 1946 INVENTOR Ml/jam F Huck Patentcd Nov, "1i 6, i948 PRINTING PRESS COMPENSATOE William F. Huck, Forest Hills, N. Y., assignor to R. Hoe & (30., Inc., New York, N. Y., a corporation of New York Application January 28, 1946, Serial No. 643,870

5 Claims. (Cl. 101l8l) The present invention relates to mechanism for maintaining register of successive impressions created by the plurality of printing units in a multiple unit printing press, the object of the invention being to correct the register of any individual printing unit without ceasing or slowing down operation of the press.

Various methods of achieving this result have heretofore been employed, such as by the advancing or retarding of the relative position of any single printing cylinder with regard to the others, by adjusting the speed of any single printing cylinder with relation to the speed of the others incorporated in the press, or by adjusting the reach of the web between individual printing units. It is intended, by the present invention, to provide a means for instantly correcting register of any individual printing unit, that is simple in operation and comparatively inexpensive and simple in constructiop.

The mechanism contemplated by the present invention accomplishes its purpose by increasing the tension on one side of a printing unit, and at the same time decreasing the tension on the opposite side of said unit to an equal degree. The differential in tension thus created on the opposite sides of such printing unit will cause the web to slip between the opposing surfaces of the printing cylinder and its associated impression roll, thereby correcting the register. By thus taking advantage of the inherent elasticity of the web, the overall length of the web in the press remains constant and the register of the printing units or other mechanism succeeding the printing unit being corrected is not affected, as would be the case if the alteration or adjustment of tension on one side of a printing unit were not balanced by an opposing adjustment of tension on the opposite side of said unit.

With these and other objects in view, as will appear from the accompanying specification, the invention consists of various features of construction and combinations of parts which will be first- Figure 1 is a schematic side elevation of a mult ple unit printing press embodying the present invention; I

Figure 2 is a side elevation, on an enlarged scale, or the mechanism employed for carrying out the present invention;

Figure 3 a view on the line 3-3 of Figure 2; and

Figure 4 is a view of a modified form of the present invention.

In Figure 1 of the drawings is shown schematically a multiple unit printing'press of the usual construction which for the purpose of illustration comprises a series of printing units numbered I through 5 and a cutting and folding unit 6. The web W is fed from the web roll 9 over a series of guide rolls l0 and between the printing cylinder II and impression roll I: of unit I, wherein the firstimpression is made thereon. From the point of impression of unit I, the web travels over succeeding guide rolls l0 to the second printing unit 2, where a second impression is made on the web, on the reverse side thereof, by the printing cylinder II and impression roll l2. Thence the web travels on through the succeeding units, passing over the various guide rolls l0 and compensating rollers I 5 that are interposed between the succeeding printing units. Each succeeding printing unit, 3,! and 5, superimposes an impression upon pression made by unit 2. Driven rollers 8 over' which the web W travels may be provided, so arranged that a good portion of the surface of said rollers is contacted by the web to provide a positive grip therewith. These may be cold water rollers or rollers of other types, and will usually be driven at the same surface speed as that of the printing cylinder H and impression roller l2.

Compensating rollers I! are located on either side of each' printing unit,'as stated above, for the purpose of adjusting the length of travel of the web to insure perfect register. Each of these compensating rollers I5 is supported on an axle or shaft it which is rotatably supported by levers or pivotal arms I! attached to the two sides of the press frameby pivots or pins I 'l to allow for pivotal movement. The compensating rollers are thus mounted for bodily movement, or translational movement of their axes of rotation, for lengthening and shortening the path of web travel between units, as usual. A shaft extending across the press may be substituted for separate pins H, where preferred. By this means, the compensating rollers I! may beswung in an are either to the right or left of their original position. By thus altering the position of the compensating rollers I5, the length ,of travel of the web W which is looped over the compensating rollers I! in its course from one unit to the succeeding unit is increased or diminished, according to the direction in which the compensating roller i5 is moved. Referring to the illustration in Figure 1, if a compensating roller I5 is moved to the right, the length of travel of the web from the preceding unit to the following unit is increased, whereas if the compensating roller I5 is moved to the left, the length of travel of the web between the same printing units is decreased, or shortened. The

alteration in the length of travel of the web between any two units will thus affect the register of the second such unit.

Attached to the outer portion of either end of the axle or shaft IQ of the compensating roller II is an arm or differential connection 20, which is free to tum-about said shaft l9. These arms or differential connections" carry at their outer ends threaded poppets 2|, which are rotatably attached thereto by pins 22. Threaded rods or links 23 and 24 are screwed into the pop ets 2i,

and are joined by means of flexible couplings 25 to a central shaft 26, fixedly mounted upon the press. A worm wheel is carried by the central shaft 26 and is driven by a worm 3| carried by a lateral shaft 32 extending the width of the press and mounted thereon for rotary motion. An electric motor 33 or other suitable driving mechanism is connected into the shaft 32 to provide for reversible rotation thereof.

4 of the single compensating roller I! with which each is associated. It is to be understood that this construction forms no integral part of the present invention, since the rods 23' and 24' may be fixed to a pivotal point in any manner desired, without affecting the operation of the present invention.

The threaded links or rods 23 and 24 are oppositely threaded, i. e. rod 23 is provided with left-hand threads 21 whereas od 24 is provided with right-hand threads 28. When the motor 33 is set in motion to actuate the shaft 32 in one direction, the motion is transmitted through the gearing 30-3l, shaft 26 and couplings 25 to the rods 23 and 24, causing them to rotate in the same direction. By reason of the reverse threading of the two rods 23 and 24, the ends of the differential connections 20 to which the rods are attached by the pivotal poppets 2| are moved either inwardly toward their respective common operating mechanism, or outwardly therefrom, according to the direction in which the driving mechanism 33 is set in motion. When one pair of cooperating rods 23 and 2|, both of which are coupled-to the same driving mechanism 33, are rotated to cause movement of the ends of the differential connections 20 to which they are connected, the opposite ends of said differential connections 20 form fixed pivotal points, being held so by the rods 23 and 24 associated with the printing units on either side thereof.

The movement of the differential connections 20 thus caused results in an adjustment of the position of the compensating rollers l5, which are carried by the respective arms 20. Both-rollers I5 thus affected are adjusted to the same degree, although in opposite directions, so that the increase in length of the web path created by the change in adjustment of one such roller is compensated by the equal decrease in length of the web path caused by the change in adjustment of the other. This coordinated change of length of path of the web leading to the printing unit and that leading from the same unit creates a differential in tension on the two sides of the unit, causing the web to creep in the direction of the greater tension at the point of impression, correcting the register, while the overall length of the web in the press may remain the same.

In the illustration, the rods 23' and 24' are shown as connected to hand operated gear mechanlsms for the purpose of providing adjustment The reversible motor 33 or other driving mechanism for the device may be remotely controlled, either manually or automatically, as by photocell registry devices of known type. Thus correction of register of any one or all of the printing units may be selectively obtained from a central point of convenience, through electrical circuits or other suitable control means, as desired. Since registry may be controlled accurately and rapidly through the compensating rollers, it will be found possible in many cases to eliminate the differential drive for the printing cylinder, which has previously been provided for adjusting the register.

In Figure 4 is illustrated a modified form of the invention, with regard to the adjustment of, the position of the compensating rollers. In this form of the invention, the compensating rollers .i5' are similarly carried on an axle or shaft IS. The shaft l 9 is rotatably supported in the frame 45 of the press within longitudinal slots 46 therein. As in the form of the invention illustrated in Figures 1 and 2, differential connections (I are rotatably carried by the ends of the shaft l9, which carry on their ends pivotal poppets 48 threaded to receive the oppositely threaded ends of the rods or links 53 and 54. The latter are, as in the previously described construction, flexibly joined to rotating shafts for rotation therewith, and these shafts are in turn connected by suitable gearing and shafting to a reversible driving mechanism for rotation thereby. This form of the invention operates in the same manner as the preferred form to provide the balanced differential between the tension of the web as it enters the associated printing unit and that as it leaves said unit, resulting in the correction of register desired.

Although in the illustration provided the rods 23 and 24 with their associated difi'erential connections 20 are shown as being applied to both sides of the press, at either end of the compensating rollers 15, it is to be understood that the same result may be obtained by installing the register correcting device to only one side of the press, depending upon the construction of the same and its inherent rigidity, with especial regard to the suspension of the compensating rollers.

It will be understood that the invention is not to be limited to the specific construction or arrangement of parts shown, but that they may be widely modified within the invention defined by the claims.

What is claimed is:

1. In a multiple unit printing press, the combination with a compensating roller, an axial shaft therefor, said shaft being moveably supported, of a differential arm mounted upon said shaft and extending in each direction transversely thereof, threaded poppets moveably attached to the ends of said differential arm, rods threadably engaging said poppets, and reversible driving means connected to said rods for rotation thereof.

2. In a multiple unit printing press, the combination with a compensating roller, an axial shaft therefor, said shaft being moveably supported, of a difierential arm mounted upon said shaft and extending in each direction transversely thereof,

threaded poppets moveably attached to the ends of said differential arm, the poppets on either end of said arm being oppositely. threaded, rods threadably engaging said poppets, and reversible driving means connected to said rods for rotation thereof.

3. In a multiple unit printing press, the combination with a compensating roller, an axial shaft therefor, said shaft being moveably supported, of a differential arm mounted upon said shaft and extending transversely thereof, threaded poppets moveably attached to said arm at points spaced from each other and from said shaft, rods threadably engaging said poppets, and reversible driving means connected to said rods for rotation thereof.

4. In a multiple unit printing press, the combination with a plurality of successive printing units of a compensating roller between each pair of adjacent units, a movable support for each compensating roller, a register adjusting motor for each unit, a shaft running from the motor to each of the movable supports for the compensating rollers immediately preceding and following the unit, and a differential connection between each movable support and the shafts running to it from the motors of the preceding and following unit, the directions of movement and proportions of parts being such that each movable support moves according to the net effect of the movement. of the motors of the preceding and following units and each motor moves the movable supports immediately preceding and following its unit correspondingly and in opposite directions.

5. The combination according to claim 4, in which the differential connection comprises a differential arm mounted on the movable support and extending transversely of the compensating roller axis, the shafts of preceding and following motors being connected to the arm at points spaced from each other and from the compensating roller axis.

WILLIAM F. H'UCK.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

Shoults et al Mar. 21, 1939 

